PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Local members of Congress are speaking out after a tragic shooting in Arizona on Saturday left several people dead and a Congresswoman critically injured.

The incident happened at a Safeway grocery store in Tucson around 10:15 a.m.

United States Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was hosting an event at the supermarket when the shots rang out. She suffered a gunshot wound to the head and was rushed into surgery.

U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, of Forest Hills, serves on the Steering and Policy Committee with Giffords. He said that he had just sat down with her on Friday.

“That was the last time I saw her and that was just yesterday,” said Doyle. “To see she’s already back in Arizona, setting up shop in a shopping center, basically working on a Saturday to meet constituents and see if she could be helpful to them, and this happens to her. It’s sad.”

According to doctors in Arizona, the bullet that hit Giffords went in one side of her head and out the other.

The victims of the shooting include John Roll who is a federal judge, as well as an aide to Giffords and a 9-year-old girl. Many of those who were wounded remain in critical or serious condition.

KDKA Political Editor Jon Delano reports that Roll was born in Pittsburgh back in 1947 and was appointed in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush to serve as a judge.

“Just a couple years ago, he allowed a lawsuit by illegal immigrants against a rancher in Arizona. He permitted the lawsuit to go ahead, brought by illegals, and that brought the whole talk show-radio community down upon him,” said Delano. “He had to have four marshals protecting him over the last year or so, but those marshals had been withdrawn.”

Authorities say the gunman was captured shortly after the shooting. He is being identified as 22-year-old Jared Loughner, of Tucson.

Giffords often held meetings on Saturday mornings when she was in town to hear concerns of those in her district. The event was called “Congresswoman on Your Corner.”

Giffords had also been the target of anger in the past; her office was vandalized after she voted in favor of the healthcare bill last March.

President Obama has sent the director of the FBI to Arizona to oversee the investigation into the shooting.

Meanwhile, Giffords fellow members of Congress remain in a state of shock following the violent incident.

“There’s a lot of shock and subdued feelings among members and we certainly want to find out… the first thing is to make sure she’s okay and her staff is okay and that her family is okay, and not draw any conclusions about what happened or why it happened,” said U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy, of Upper St. Clair. “Really, at this phase, it’s really all the thoughts are about her and her family and what’s best for them.”

cant belive those poor supporters show up and get gunned down….what the hell is up with these people who thinks a bullet can help them…..crazy idiots poor little child getting killed by a stray bullet….

I’m so deeply upset with all this political BS. Palin is really stupid to put something like that on a website knowing, we do have people in this country that are not that stupid to not read into what a cross hairs mean! It’s bad enough we have to deal with all the shootings in neighborhoods that has nothing to do with politics, But to kill a child. Is this the type of people we have become? Stupid, Gutless, and all behind WHAT? Get Well Soon Gabby! We the people in Pittsburgh, PA know how to come together in times like these and we want you to know we are praying for you and all the families from this act of a Gutless Coward Who Needs to dealt with. Get Well Gabby

There should be an investigation opened on Palin. The evidence is there.

She openly called for an attack on a specific person, knowing that there were crazy people who in all likelihood would carry out her wishes.

She can claim that a rifle scope crosshairs doesn’t mean a rifle scope crosshairs. See how far that line of argument gets her.

The anti-abortion fanatics do the same thing – putting out wanted posters with all kinds of violent imagery. They do it anonymously because they KNOW they will be culpable if something happens to those people.

Who thought it was a good idea to hold this political rally and event outside the front of a grocery store and in a large parking lot in a large shopping area ? These politically-charged rallies should be illegal in public places. Political rallies and events should have to be held behind closed doore at a hall or in an auditorium. These public servants should have to get a permit and provide security to ensure the safety of the people attending these events. There are always going to be mentally ill people walking the streets; some who have guns. When I was younger I couldn’t even sell Girl Scout cookies in front of a grocery store without getting permission from a store manager and most of the time they said no.

I feel sorry for the people who died yesterday. At least Ms. Giffords is alive at this point and hopefully she and the others who are in critical condition will make full recoveries.

I also feel sorry for the people who had no clue this event was taking place and got caught in this chaotic mess. What measures were taken to ensure the safety of the people attedning this event and the people who were shopping in this large area ? It does not look like there was any security at this event if people attending the event had to tackle the shooter to the ground and put their lives in jeopardy. What is the responsibility of the person holding these events to protect people who are not carrying guns at these political rallies and events from the people who are carrying guns at these rallies and events ?

This situation is very similary to the Viginia Tech shooting and it looks like this country has not learned a thing from the VT event, 3.5 years later down the line. Same scenario; a mentally ill young man who was supposed to get a pshyciatric evaluation,struggling in school, slipped through the cracks and got a hold of a gun. Maybe if parents were able to help children who are 18 and older, some of these situations could be prevented. But just like the VT shooter and this shooter, they are over the age of 18 and considered adults and the parents do not have access to any information conerning their child, their education or their mental well-being because they are considered adults at 18 years of age.

Maybe the moral of the story is to change that age from 18 to when your child graduates from college and gets a full-time job. So if your child graduates from college and gets a full-time job and is contributing to society in a positive way, society will consider you an adult. Until that time, a parent would be able to intervene and try to prevent these situations. If a school was allowed to nofity a parent of their struggling child in college (most of us paying for our child’s education) then parents could help prevent these situations.

I think this eliminates Sarah Palin’s political influence.
It may even teach this person words have meanings.
Fighting words are incendiary and actionable in law.
Mrs Palin issued fighting words and thus in my opinion is guilty of a tort.
The blood family of this lovely Jewish women and her husband have standing to sue for every dollar the Palin family has.

It was a terrible tragedy especially about the child. Now get over it —- people die every day. The perpetrator was (from news reports) obviously mentally ill. I feel very bad for him too (I know most people are not capable of understanding that). It appears his mind set combined with the great public disgust of congress to cause this event. Frankly, I would now enjoy hearing some news that is NOT related to this. Congress will surely (as usual) over react. In response to this event, it will enact onerous and liberty stealing laws. The continuous repetitive reporting on this topic is very irritating.